Door lift mechanism



Oct. 9, 1945. T. MADLAND Doon LIFT MEcHANIsM Filed July 29, 1943 @www o o o a ,@mwo o o o 0\ JO d. 0.a MN5@ o d o o o o =o lo o a o e e o o o o 0 c O O l/m\ al@ o oo. o o

J o A/ o o s n o o o ca o o rllilll r J Patented Oct. 9, 1945 DOOR LIFT MECHANISM Thorvald Madland, Chicago, Ill., assignor to The YoungstownSteel DoorV Company, Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application July 29, 1943, Serial No. 496,557

' 9 Claims. (ci. 1'6-995 This invention relates to door lift vmechanisms and is directed primarily to lift mechanisms for sliding doors of railway house cars.

It is an object of this invention to provide lift mechanisms for sliding car doors so constructed that the overall width between mechanisms on opposite sides of a car will be held'to a dimension permitting application of the lift mechanisms to all cars irrespective of theirwidth'so as t create a single standard lift mechanism.

A further object is to provide left mechanisms for sliding car doors whose elements are so constructed that they may be used interchangeably upon main and auxiliary doors.

A further object isv to provide lift mechanism for sliding car doors which shall permit an increase in the inside width of railway house cars and a corresponding increase in the cubical capacity of the cars.

Other objects of the invention will become clear as the description thereof proceeds.`

In the drawing forming part of this specilication: Y*

` Fig. 1 is a partial elevation showing'the 'invention applied to the main and auxiliary doors of a double door construction for railway house cars.

Fig. 2 is -a horizontal section taken on line 2-2 of Fig. l, parts being omitted for greater clarity.

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section taken on line 3-3 Fig. 5 isa top plan view of a roller and roller housing assembly.

In the 'drawing the invention is villustrated applied to the mainv and auxiliary doors of a double door construction for railway house cars. It will be apparent, of course,` that the'invention is not so limited but is applicable as wellfto the single door constructions of such cars.

Referring to the drawing, the numeral I0 designates in its entirety the main door of a double door construction. The particular construction of the door forms no partof the instant invention and its description in vdetail is, accordingly, not believed to be necessary.v The door is chosen for illustrative purposes only to show the application of the lift mechanism of the instant invention.

This mechanism embodies a roller and roller housing assembly, one of which is disposed adjacent to the forward lower corner of the door and the other adjacent to the rear lower corner of the door. Each of these roller and roller housing assemblies comprises a roller housing II embodying spaced inner and outer walls I2 and I3 between which a roller I4 is received. A pin I5 extends through the roller and is supported in the walls I2 and I3 of the roller housing, as more clearly shown in Fig. 4 of the drawing. The roller I4 embodies a roller bearing I6 in order to v provide for ease of movement of the door.

The inner and outer walls I2 and I3 of the roller housing are connected'by means of an end wall vIl as more clearly shown in Fig. 3 of the drawing. The end wall I'I carries a projection I3 which, as shown in Fig. 5 of the drawing, is so constructed and arranged as to be symmetrical with respect to the remainder of the roller housing. The wall Il is also formed with an upstanding flange I9`for a reason which will hereinafter appear. It is to be observed that the flange I9 isalso symmetrical with respect to the roller housing. In positionl upon the door I0 the roller housing is swingably secured by means of a pin 2B, the inner end of which is supported by the upstanding flange ZI of a substantially T- shaped member 22 secured to and reinforcing the bottom edge of the door. The outer end of the pin is supported in a retainer member' 23 preferably in the form of a casting secured,as by means of rivets 24, upon the door I0. In order to permit engagement between the roller I4 and the track 25 the outwardly extending stem 26 of the T-shaped reinforcing member is'coped as indicated at 2l. The depending flange 28 of the bottom reinforcing member cooperates'with a threshold plate 29 and an outturned' lip 30 formed on the threshold plate to exclude reflected light and the-entry of cinders, dust and the like, from the car.

The track 25 is substantially channel-shaped 5 in section and is supported upon the car by means of a' series of brackets l3I which are secured to aside sillv reinforcing member 32 fastened to the side sill 33.

The projections I8 are connected by means of a bar 34 whichy by reason of the fact that in the operation of the'lift mechanism it is subjected to tension, is economically formed of1 a at strap member.

The arrangement of the roller housing members II and the retainers 23 is clearlyV shown in Fig. 1 of the drawing. As there illustrated the door is frictionally supported upon the track through the engagement between the outwardly extending stem 26 and the track 25. In this p csition the door is lowered and the rollers If'l are relieved of the Weight of the door. To move the door it is rst elevated so that the weight is transferred to the rollers. For this purpose the invention provides an actuating member 35 disposed preferably adjacent to the forward lower corner of the door. The actuating member and an operating lever mounted upon it as hereinafter explained lie above the roller and roller housing assembly adjacent to the forward lower corner ofthe door so as to position them at such a distance above the iloor of the car, approximately 3", that they will conform to the required tunnel clearance diagram even though they lie outwardlS7 of the retainer members 23. In this manner, the overall width between the retainer members on opposite sides of a car at the floor line and for the required distance above the floor line can be maintained at 10' 5", the minimum distance demanded by any railroad, so that these lift mechanisms are applicable to railway house cars of all widths. A single standard lift mechanism is thus created which obviates the plurality of standards now employed and which lies outwardly of the inner plane of the door.

The actuating member 35 embodies an outer trunnion 3S journalled in the retainer casting 23 and an inner trunnion 31 journalled in the rear wall 38 formed on the retainer casting 23. The outer trunnion 36 is extended beyond the retainer as indicated at 39. An operating lever 40 is mounted upon the extension 39 and may be fastened thereto as by means of welding.

The actuating member 35 is provided with spaced, preferably cylindrical, members 4I and 42, which, as more clearly appears in Fig. 2 of the drawing, are offset relative to the axis of rotation of the trunnions 36 and 31. The actuating member is so disposed that the upwardly extending flange I9 of the roller housing I I lies in the space between the members 4I and 42. As best shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawing, the actuating member (l5 is symmetrical about the axis of rotation of the trunnions 36 and 31. From Figs. l and 4 of the drawing, it will be apparent that the operating lever 4U is also symmetrical about a vertical plane parallel to the inner and outer faces of the lever.

A substantially Z-shaped clip 43 is secured as by means of a rivet 44 to the inner face of the operating lever 40 so that its depending flange 45 is disposed inwardly of an upstanding guiding and retaining flange 46 formed on the retainer casting 23.

It is believed that the operating of the lift mechanism will be apparent from the foregoing description. The main and auxiliary doors are shown in their lowered and closed positions in Fig. 1. To open the main door I 0 the lever 40 is grasped and pulled downwardly in clockwise direction. During this movement the actuating member 35 is rotated in clockwise direction so as to effect engagement-.between the member 42 and the upstanding flange I9 of the roller and roller housing assembly. The force imparted to the flange I9 by means of the member 42 causes the roller to bear upon the track 25 and to set up an upward reaction against the pin 2D and, through the pin, a lifting force upon the door. 'Ihis lifting force is transmitted uniformly to the door by means of the connecting bar 34 which communicates the force supplied by operation of the lever 40 to the assembly adjacent to the lower rear corner of the door. In this manner the door is raised above the track 25 and supported upon the rollers for easy opening movement. When the lever is released the door is promptly lowered by the action of gravity. The auxiliary door is similarly raised by a counter-clockwise pull upon its operating lever.

As more clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 3 of the drawing, the retainer 23 is formed with symmetrically placed bearings 41 and 48. This feature of the retainer construction and the symmetrical structure of the roller and roller housing assembly, of the operating lever, and of the actuating member eliminates the need for rights and lefts in the construction of these parts and, additionally, permits their use upon auxiliary doors of double door construction as well. The application of the parts of the lift mechanism hereinabove described to the auxiliary door 49 i-s clearly shown in Fig. 1 of the drawing. It will be apparent from a comparison of the lift mechanisms on the main door IIJ and the auxiliary door 49 that application to the latter is readily obtained by simply transposing the roller and roller housing assembly and the operating lever. With regard to the employment of the lift mechanism upon the auxiliary door, it will be apparent that the member 4I of the actuating mechanism is there utilized to impart lifting force tothe upstanding ilange I9.

The elimination of rights and lefts and the establishment of a universally applicable lift mechanism is clearly advantageous but it is to be understood that the instant invention is not limited to these desirable features. Where the attainment of these advantages is not a consideration, it is apparent that the operating levers need not be symmetrical in construction and that one or the other of the members 4Il and 42 of the actuating member 35 may be eliminated. Similarly, one or the other of the retainer bearings 41 and 48 may be eliminated and the symmetrical construction of the roller and roller housing assembly be not obtained.

While the lift mechanism hereinabove described satisfies the most critical tunnel clearance diagram of any railroad it can also be used by those railroads whose tunnel clearance diagrams are more liberal. In this case the use of the instant lift mechanism enables those railroads to increase' the effective inside width and cubic capacity of their cars without exceeding their clearance diagrams.

It will be apparent that numerous changes and modifications in the details 0f the invention will be clear to those skilled in the art. It is intended, therefore, th'at all such modications and changes be comprehended within this invention, which is to be limited only by the scope of the claims appended hereto.

I claim:

1. Lift mechanism for sliding car doors comprising spaced roller housings, rollers carried by said housings, means offset from the axis of said rollers for journalling said housings in a car door. an actuating member having inner and outer trunnionsI journalled in said door on opposite sides of one of said rollers, said member embodying means extending between said trunnions in offset relationship to the axis of rotation thereof, a lever mounted upon said outer trunnion on the outside of said door' and being swingable in a plane parallel to said door, and means connecting said roller Ahousings for simultaneous operation, the housing for said one roller having an upstanding flange disposed at one side of said means on said actuating member.

2. Lift mechanism for sliding car doors comprising spacer roller housings, rollers carried by said housings, means offset from the axis of said rollers for journalling said housings in a car door, an actuating member horizontally journalled in said door above one of said rollers, spaced symmetrically disposed means carried by said actuating member in offset relationship to the axis of rotation thereof, a lever mounted upon said actuating member, said lever being swingable in a plane parallel to said door, and means connecting said roller housings for simultaneous operation, the housing for said one roller having an upstanding flange disposed between said means carried by said actuating member.

3. Lift mechanism for sliding car doors comprising spaced roller housings, rollers carried by said housings, means offset from the axis of said rollers for journalling said housings in a car door, lan actuating member journalled in said door above one of said rollers, means carried by said actuating member in offset relationship to the axis of rotation thereof, a lever mounted upon said actuating member, and means connecting said roller housings for simultaneous operation, the housing for said one roller having an upstanding flange disposed at one side of said means carried by said actuating member, each roller housing and roller assembly being symmetrical about a plane at a right angle to the axis of rotation of th'e roller.

4. Lift mechanism for sliding car doors comprising spaced roller housings, rollers carried by said housings, means offset from the axis f said rollers for journalling said housings in a car door, an actuating member journalled in said door above one of said rollers, spaced symmetrically disposed means carried by said actuating member in offset relationship to the axis of rotation thereof, a lever mounted upon said actuating member and means connecting said roller housings for simultaneous operation, the housing for said one roller having an upstanding flange disposed between said means carried by said actuating member, each roller housing and roller assembly being symmetrical about a plane at a right angle to the axis of rotation of the roller.

5. Lift mechanism for sliding car doors comprising spaced roller housings, rollers carried b-y said housings, means offset from the axis of said rollers for journalling said housings in a car door, retainers on said door adapted to enshroud said roller housings and rollers, said retainers having symmetrically disposed bearings for said journal means, an actuating member journalled in said door above one of said rollers, spaced symmetrically disposed means carried by said actuating member in oiset relationship to the axis of rotation thereof, a lever mounted upon said actuating member and means connecting said roller housings for simultaneous operation, the housing for said one roller having an upstanding ange disposed between said means carried by said actuating member, each' roller housing and roller assembly being symmetrical about a plane at a right angle to the axis 'of rotation of the roller, said lever being symmetrica1 about a plane parallel to the front and rear faces of said lever.

6. Lift mechanism for sliding doors of railway house cars, said mechanism being disposed out- Wardly of the inner plane of said doors and comprising spaced roller housings, rollers carried by said housings, means offset from the axis of rotation of said rollers for journalling said housings in a door, a horizontally disposed actuating member adapted to be journalled in said doors above one of said rollers, a lever mounted upon said actuating member on the outside of said door and swingable in a plane parallel to said door, means connecting said roller housings for simultaneous operation, and means operatively connecting said actuating member and the roller housing for said one roller, the lift` mechanisms on said doors on opposite sides of a said car being approximately within the minimum tunnel clearance diagram.

7. Lift mechanism for a sliding car door comprising spaced roller housings, rollers carried by said housings, means on said door enshrouding said housings and said rollers, means offset from the axis of rotation of said rollers for journalling said housings within 'said enshrouding means and outwardly of the inner plane of said door, an actuatingr member, horizontally disposed trunnions for journalling said actuating member entirely within said enshrouding means above one of said rollers and outwardly of the inner plane of said door, a lever mounted upon said journal means for said actuating member upon the outside of said enshrouding means, said lever being swingable in a plane parallel to said door, means on said actuating member and the housing for said one roller engageable upon operation of said lever to impart rotation to said housing, and means disposed upon the inside of said door connecting said housings for simultaneous rotation.

8. Lift mechanism for a sliding door of a, railway house car, said mechanism being disposed outwardly of the inner plane of said door and comprising spaced roller housings, rollers carried by said housings, means offset from the axis of rotation 0f said rollers for journalling said housings upon said door, an actuating member, means adapted to journal said actuating member in a horizontal position upon said door above one of said rollers, said actuating member being engageable with the housing for said one roller, a lever mounted upon said journal means of said actuating member, said lever being swingable in a plane parallel to said door, and means disposed upon the inside of said door connecting said roller housings for simultaneous operation.

9. Lift mechanism for a sliding car door, said mechanism being disposed outwardly of the inner plane of said door and comprising a roller housing, a roller carried by said housing, means on said door enshrouding said housing and said roller, means offset from the axis of rotation of said roller for journalling said housing Within said enshrouding means, an actuating member, horizontally disposed trunnions for journalling said actuating member entirely within said enshrouding means above one of said rollers, a lever mounted upon said journal means for said actuating member on the outside of said enshrouding means, said lever being swingable in a plane parallel to said door, said actuating member and said housing being engaged upon operation of said lever to impart rotation to said housing.

THORVALD MADLAND. 

